


She Used To Be Mine

by Nicoline10



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-01
Updated: 2015-04-25
Packaged: 2018-03-15 18:08:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 7,193
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3456812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nicoline10/pseuds/Nicoline10
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Three years ago, if you asked an 18 year old Beth Greene where she'd be when she was 21, waitress and single mother was not even an entertaining option. Yet, here she is. Loosely inspired by the Sara Bareilles song, <em> She Used To Be Mine</em></p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Most Days I don't Recognize Me

**Author's Note:**

> **The idea for this little fic came from the very beautiful song of the same title, by Sara Bareilles. It demanded to be written, and I hope you all enjoy it. I own nothing.**

It's the smallest things that made Beth think of him. The stickiness of a hot  
Georgia summer day, much like the day they met. The unmistakable scent of  
leather and smoke that she would catch a whiff of whenever someone from the auto  
shop he used to work at stopped by to try a slice of her latest pie recipe.

Those small reminders didn't hurt quite as much as the towheaded toddler sitting  
on the stool next to her, wearing her father's crooked smile.

Beth loved her daughter more than she ever thought she could love anything, but  
everything about Lily Jane was reminiscent of Daryl. From the way she would bite  
her bottom lip when she was in trouble, to the squint of her dark blue eyes when  
she was thinking hard about something.

And right then Lily was concentrating on finishing the piece of pie Beth set  
down in front of her minutes before. It was a simple lemon meringue with fresh  
strawberries adorning the top. It was her baby's favorite because it happened to  
be named after her on the diner's menu.

"You want some milk with that, sweetheart?," Beth asked, watching as her  
daughter stuffed a heaping forkful of the pastry into her pint sized mouth.

Usually her daddy would watch Lily while Beth worked her night shifts at Carol's  
diner, but there was an emergency with Mr. Harrison's horse two hours away and  
he had to drop the munchkin off with her at work. Being that her boss was a  
single mother herself, she understood and didn't mind the rare occasions the  
three year old would join Beth at work. It also helped that Carol was Daryl's  
closest friend before he and his brother left town without so much as a goodbye.

Lily nodded her head, knowing her Mama didn't like it when she talked with her  
mouth full.

Beth went behind the counter of the diner to the small fridge, grabbed a carton  
of milk and proceeded to pour it into a glass.

"Here you go ladybug," Beth said putting the half filled cup in front of her  
daughter. She never filled anything she gave the tot to the top because it  
eventually wound up all over her or the floor.

Kicking her tiny legs back in forth with glee, Lily let out a "mmmm," before  
taking a large gulp from the glass.

"Did you have fun helping on the farm with Papa, today?" Beth inquired as she  
began to clean the counter top.

"Yep. We feeded the chickies," Lily squealed excitedly, then prattled on about  
how her Aunt Maggie let her hold one and it left a present in her hand.

With a scrunch of her nose, Beth let out an amused laugh. She could just picture  
her little girl's face when she discovered what exactly the baby chick deposited  
in her palm.

"It pooped on me Mama!" The small child cried, clearly outraged.

Beth smirked. "Baby we live on a farm, it's more common than you think. Animals  
don't have big girl pants like you."

Lily was unimpressed by that. "They should wear diapers, than they wouldn't poop  
all over people's."

Beth was just about to shake her head in agreement, when the door to the diner  
sprung open, and a wild eyed Maggie came barreling through.

"Bethy ya gotta come quick, he's hurt," she said, face sweaty and hands stained with what looked like blood.

"Who, Daddy?!" Beth asked, panic starting to rise throughout her body.

She immediately threw off her white apron and grabbed Lily from where she sat,  
lifting her daughter into her now shaking arms.

"No, not Daddy..." Maggie paused and eyed her younger sister carefully.

"It's Daryl."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm just really playing around with this little idea. If it sucks, tell me in a very nice way. If you like it, also let me know. Thanks!


	2. Sometimes Life Just Slips In Through A Backdoor

The drive from the diner back to the farm is a bit of a blur. Maggie's going on about how she and her husband Glenn, practically tripped over Daryl's unconscious body sprawled across the front porch and it sounds more like the adults from Charlie Brown than English. 

"He's alive though," Glenn chimes in, looking back at her and Lily with a half hearted smile. 

Even with all of the dramatics, her daughter, God love her, fell asleep as soon as they buckled her in the car seat. 

That little girl could sleep through a tornado, much like her mother. When Beth used to actually sleep a full night that is. Now she's lucky to sleep an hour or two before she's up with memories of _him_ haunting her dreams. 

Before she can catch her breath, Beth hears the familiar sound of crunching gravel under tires and knows they're in the driveway of her home. 

Glenn jumps out of the drivers side of his jeep and looks from Maggie to Beth, back to Maggie, before he loses the internal battle in his head and heads for the house. 

Maggie sighs. "He was shot. The bullet went straight through. He's out now from the pain meds Merle gave him, but you can see-"

"Merle's with him?" Beth interrupts. 

Maggie groans in disgust. "Yep. Still the same miserable piece of shit he's always been." 

Beth had a love/hate relationship with Merle. She loved that he cared about his brother as much as he did, but hated that he somehow always managed to drag Daryl down in whatever shitstorm he got involved with. 

Beth took a moment to calm her nerves, then gestured to Lily. 

"C-can you take bug, I don't think now is the appropriate time for her to meet her father."

Maggie nods and unbuckled her belt to go grab the girl from the backseat. 

Beth stares at her baby's sleeping form and runs a hand over her curly blonde head, trying to borrow a bit of the child's serenity. 

The walk to the front door is a long one. Slowly, Beth opens it and with her head held high, bolts straight into the living room.

"Blondie! Why ain't chu a sight for sore eyes," Merle drawls, a Cheshire grin spreading across his worn features. 

She wants to shout at him and blame him for taking the man she loved away from her and their daughter, but there would be time to tell Merle to go fuck himself later. 

It comes out as an almost whisper. "Where is he?" She won't allow herself to say his name, not yet. 

The smile Merle adorned seconds earlier becomes a tight lipped frown. "Take a wild fuckin guess," and points up the stairs. 

Her old room. Of course. He's been snuck out of that window more times than she could count, the last time met with a three year absence.

Begrudgenly, Beth climbs the steps and makes the familiar right to her childhood room, which more or less now was Lily's. Hopefully he was too doped up to notice any changes. 

The door is open so she just walks in. And like all her dreams, there he was... _Daryl._

Beth lets out a breath she didn't realize she was holding and sits at the corner of the bed. 

He looks the exact same, except his hair was longer and there was some new grey spots growing in the dark brown of his goatee. He had a cut over one eye and his other was swollen shut. Still the most beautiful man Beth had ever laid eyes on.

Her weight shifting the bed must have startled him, because one eye, the lesser damaged of the two, opened.

"Beth."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I decided to post the first two chapters to see how you guys like it. Hope to update soon. Please feel free to review!


	3. I Would Give It All Back

"Beth," his voice is still as rough as she remembers and sends a shiver down her spine. 

The sound of her name leaving his lips is all it takes for the tears Beth had been trying to keep at bay to break free silently down her face. 

Against her better judgement, she takes the hand closest to her in both of hers and gently squeezes. 

She takes a deep breath and her voice comes out in a soft whisper. "Hey." 

Daryl groans, from the pain or her presence she doesn't know. 

"Am I dead?" He asks.

Beth shakes her head and chokes out a small laugh. "Not for lack of trying on Merle's part, but no." 

He shifts so he's sitting up slightly, wincing and grabbing at his bandaged upper arm while doing so. 

Daryl opens his mouth to speak, but shuts it again after nothing comes out.

Well if he couldn't bring himself to approach the awkward elephant in the room, she would. 

"Why are you here, Daryl?" Beth questioned, genuinely wondering why he would come crashing back into her life after all this time. 

He stares at her blankly. "I got shot, if ya hadn't noticed," he says dryly, trying to stray away from the conversation Beth wanted, no _needed_ , to have. 

She narrows her blue eyes at him, clearly unimpressed by his attempt at avoiding her question.

"Oh I noticed," she spits out, fury building in the core of her chest. "I meant, _why_ are you here, in town!" 

"It's been three damn years!" Beth exclaims, all of the emotions she had been keeping locked inside, threatening to burst out of her. 

Daryl was never one to take to being hollered at, so naturally, he shouts back at her, "I know how god damn long it's been, a'right!" and proceeds to study the hand she let go of moments prior. 

They're both silent for what seems like an eternity before Beth finds courage to speak again. 

"Do you remember the night before you left, Daryl?" She asks, searching her former lover's face for any trace of emotion. 

Beth could picture that night as clear as it were yesterday. 

_It was a week after her nineteenth birthday when Daryl crawled in through her bedroom window for the last time. Daryl said nothing as he slid into bed behind her and lifted her nightgown up to her waist. He buried his face in the crook of her neck as he moved her underwear to the side and began touching her._

_Almost immediately, he turned Beth onto her back and when she looked into his steel blue eyes, they were filled with such desperation that it startled her._

_"Daryl?" She questioned and lifted her left hand to his scruff laden cheek._

_He leaned into her touch and kissed the finger where she was wearing the ring he had given her, promising to marry her when she graduated college._

_As Daryl pushed into her ready heat, he kept his gaze on Beth the entire time. Like he wanted to commit everything about her in his memory. The way she gasped when he hit just the right spot to the beautiful flush of her skin as she writhed beneath him. It was only when he came that he allowed himself to close his eyes._

_He pulled out of her and gathered her small form in his arms. "I love ya Beth. You're my heart, girl," he slurred as sleep started to drag him into unconsciousness._

_"I love ya more," she replied, but couldn't shake the feeling that he was saying goodbye._

_When Beth woke up alone the next morning, the events to follow would prove her right._

He scoffed, "Course I do," still not looking directly at her.

Beth sighed, staring at the man before her. "You were saying goodbye. Jesus Daryl, I _felt_ it. I just want to know why." 

She grabbed his chin in her hand and lifted his face to meet her gaze, trying to ignore the jolt of electricity she felt touching him again. "I deserve to know."

Daryl's hard as nails glare softened into the familiar look of affection Beth was so used to being directed at her. 

"I knew we was leavin when I came to you that night...one of Merle's deals went bad and we couldn't stay," he began to explain. 

Beth rolled her eyes. "Of course it did," she smarted bitterly. 

His eyes lit up with a new blazing fire inside. "The pieces of shit knew who your family were. Where y'all lived, went to school. I had no fuckin choice, girl!" 

"If you would have gotten hurt or worse, that would be on me!" he shouted, pounding on his chest with his uninjured hand. 

Beth knew in her heart Daryl was telling the truth, but that didn't change the hurt and anger she felt towards him and his brother. 

"So what, you decided to have one last crack at me before you left without so much as a word?!" She spewed viciously. 

Beth didn't believe any of the venom coming out of her mouth, but she wanted to hurt him as badly as he did her. 

If looks could kill, the one Daryl was throwing in her direction would have had Beth six feet under. "That what you think," he says, his temper rising with every word. 

Unshed tears blanketed her voice. "It's what I know!" Her big watery eyes burning with anguish.

Lily's tired cry from the hallway brought Beth out of her own pain, mind now filled with thoughts of her daughter. 

"When did Maggie have a baby?" He questioned with a comical smirk on his face. 

Well it was now or never. 

"She didn't, I did."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So in between studying, I was able to get this out. Hope everyone is enjoying this little story so far. 
> 
> Much love, 
> 
> N


	4. And Rewrite An Ending Or Two, For The Girl That I Knew

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A quick little update so you guys don't think I've left you hanging.

"She didn't, I did," Beth said, eyes sparkling with mirth. 

Might as well pull off the band aid all at once, she thought.

The look in Daryl's eyes' went from confusion to disappointed, to anger, in an instant. 

His mouth twisted into a menacing scowl and Beth knew harsh words were to come. This was not the way she wanted to tell Daryl he was a father, and she imagined he's furious with her. 

"So what, I leave and your pathetic ass gets knocked up by whoever would give ya a go?" He says viciously. 

Beth stares at him incredulously. He thinks someone else is their child's father;she would laugh if it weren't so serious. 

Truthfully, she hadn't been with another man since Daryl. Maggie and her best friend Tara had tried setting her up on dates, but they've all ended horrendously. As soon as she mentioned that she had a young daughter, they checked out. 

"I didn't _get_ myself knocked up, asshole! It was unexpected!" She spat at him with just as much venom. 

Daryl scoffed, "That's what happens when ya whore around, sweetheart." Every word from his mouth cutting her like a knife. 

Beth wasn't going to take his verbal abuse anymore, she had enough. 

Biting her bottom lip to keep in her tears she shouts, "She's your's, you, you, moron!" 

Daryl's face contorts into one of absolute pain. "What?" He says, voice so low Beth's not entirely sure she heard him. 

Beth smiles bright thinking of the little girl outside the room.

"She's three, and I may be biased, but she's the most beautiful child I've ever seen," she laughs, sniffling a bit from the tears that have escaped down her face. 

Daryl makes a noise deep in his throat that sounds like a strangled sob. "She?"

Beth nods. "Lily Jane, or as I've taken to callin' her, ladybug," looking down at her hands so she wouldn't have to gaze at his broken expression. 

"Did you know, before I left?" he manages to get out, voice dripping with sorrow. 

Beth glanced up at him, and her heart broke. Daryl might had just gotten shot, but it didn't seem to effect him half as badly as hearing he had a child.

"No, it was after," she trailed off hesitantly, "you know..." 

He knew exactly what she meant. After their last night together. 

"When you left, I felt like my whole world collapsed around me. Days just blended together. I didn't even notice I hadn't had my cycle for two months until Maggie bought me the test and demanded I take it," Beth explained, trying to keep her tears to a minimum. 

"Did you finish school?" Daryl asked, but Beth had a feeling he already knew the answer.

She quit going to college as soon as Lily was born, but made a promise to go back once she were older. Unfortunately, time and life got in the way and Beth got a job instead.

"No," she answered honestly, knowing he would blame himself. 

Daryl let out a humorless laugh. "Turns out everyone was right when they told me I'd ruin your life. That's what Dixon's do best." 

"Bullshit!" Beth protested, pointing at the closed door leading to the hallway.

"That little girl's half Dixon, and there ain't nothin' wrong with her or her daddy," she added the last bit for good measure. 

"That's cause she got you fo' a mama. I haven't done shit," he replied, running a hand through his hair and down his bruised face. 

Daryl stares at her, and there it was again. The softness in his eyes that said his world revolves around her. 

He takes her hand out of her lap and encloses it in both of his, bringing it to his lips. 

"I'm sorry baby. For leaving you like I did, acting like a prick, everythang," he breathes, lips moving against the tops of her knuckles. 

She wants to throw her arms around him and tell him that it's okay. That she still loves him, will always love him. But she can't. Not yet at least.

"I know," Beth says softly.

And she really does. She gets why Daryl reacted the way he did and that he didn't mean it. It's just his natural defense mechanism, no matter how messed up it may be. Not that that excused it, it was just an argument for a different time. 

They stayed like that for a few minutes, both of them content to be in the other's presence again.

An aggravated, "Beth," comes from outside the door. Maggie never had much patience. 

She can hear her daughters voice along with her sister's, and suspects her little one is giving her aunt a hard time going to bed. 

Daryl, always the hunter, perks up at the sound of the child's voice in his ears. 

He lifts his head up to look at Beth. "That her?" 

"Yes. She's very loud, I blame you for that one," Beth teases with a grin. 

Daryl nods his head to the door and bites his thumb nervously. "I wanna meet her." 

Beth smile grows at the man in front of her. He looks every bit the part of expectant father. Except he was a few years late. 

"Come in Mags," Beth shouts to her sister. 

"Are you sure? I have a small visitor that needs to be shown to her guest bedroom," Maggie says awkwardly, trying to talk over the toddler in her arms. 

Beth rolls her eyes. "He knows Maggie," 

No sooner than the words are out of Beth's mouth, Maggie swings open the door and thrusts Lily carefully into her mother's lap. 

"Congratulations, it's a girl."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AND THE TRUTH SHALL SET YOU FREE!! lol Hope you all enjoyed the chapter, I will update as soon as I can. Please leave comments or kudos if you like the story so far. 
> 
> N


	5. Bring Back The Fire In Her Eyes That's Been Gone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long to get an update out, school's been kicking my ass! Hope you all like it!

"Congratulations, it's a girl," Maggie says and thrusts her niece carefully into Beth's lap. 

She's about to walk out of the room when she pauses at the door and turns back to the reunited family, glaring daggers at Daryl.

"If ya weren't already shot, I'd have done it myself Daryl...Ya hurt her again, and I won't hesitate to put a bullet in your skull." 

And with that parting sentiment, Maggie leaves, shutting the wooden door behind her. 

"Sorry," Beth says with an embarrassed and forced half smile. 

Daryl shrugs it off. "S'ok, heard lot worse." 

His gaze is then focused on the toddler staring back at him with the same dark blue eyes, _his_ eyes, although shaped like her mother's.

Daryl studies his daughter, trying to imprint everything about her into his memory like a tattoo on his skin. From the curly mop of corn silk colored hair to the little mole on the corner of her mouth, mirroring his own.

His heart felt so full, Daryl didn't know quite how to describe it. Like all the bullshit he went through growing up; coming home to see his mama burnt herself alive in his childhood home, to his father using his own son as a punching bag, it was all worth it. Daryl finally felt like his life had meaning, and she was sitting in her mama's lap with a thumb in her mouth. 

He bit the inside of his cheek to keep his tears in. "Hey darlin'," Daryl whispered, voice hoarse with emotion. 

Beth gently nudges the toddler in her lap. "What'ya say, sweetheart?" 

"Hi," Lily said timidly, her thumb still lodged in her mouth. 

"Do you want to hold her?" Beth asks, as if he'd say no. 

Daryl nods and replies softly, "That okay?" He looks to his daughter for approval, waiting for her to start screaming at the stranger before her. But being half Beth's child, that's not what happens. 

She lifts her arms in the air and waits with an impatient arch of her brow that is so completely Beth, to be picked up. 

Not wanting Daryl to tear his stitches, Beth picks Lily up and places her into his lap. 

He immediately puts an arm around his daughter's waist, cautious that she not fall off him or the bed. 

Daryl runs a calloused finger over one of Lily's cherub cheeks, which earns him a giggle. She then takes her own finger and mimics her father's movements to the right side his face. 

Her hand stops in place when she feels the rise of flesh from the bruises on his face. 

Lily peeped up at Daryl with a frown forming on her little face. "You get hurted?" she asks in her tiny voice.

Daryl shot a quick glance to Beth before fixing his eyes back to his little girl. 

"Yeah darlin', but I'm better now that y'all are here with me," he croons, a small smile gracing across his lips. 

Daryl pauses, trying to figure out how to word what he wants to say next. 

"Does she know who I-" he starts, but is cut off by his daughter's voice. 

"Yer my daddy," Lily says with such certainty and a wide baby teethed grin. 

Daryl stares at the child, bug eyed. 

After what he did, never did he think Beth would speak his name again, yet alone tell their child who he was. But that was Beth, even when people treated her like total shit, her first instinct was still to turn the other cheek and be kind. He always knew he never deserved her, she was too good, too innocent for him, but it made him want her that much more. 

When they met Beth was barely out of high school, and from the moment he laid eyes on her, she luminated the darkness that was his life. Looking at her now, he could see his sun dimmed a bit in his absence. Daryl would make it right with his girls if it were the last thing he did. 

He couldn't stop the tears that escaped from his eyes if he wanted to, and for once he didn't feel so bad about that. 

Taking Lily's small hand from his cheek, he clasped it in both his much larger ones and brought them to his chest, over his heart.

"That's right sweetheart," he managed to croak out through his quiet weeping. 

"You had to go way, huh?" she asks naively, big eyes fixated on her father.

Daryl nods in the dark, face only lit by the moonlight through the windows. 

"I'm so sorry I had to leave you and yer mama, but I'm here now and I'm never leavin' y'all again," he vows, gathering the   
little girl close to his chest in a passionate but gentle hug. 

"It's o'kay daddy," his daughter says, words muffled by his shirt, but he clearly hears her trying to comfort him. 

Daryl chuckles and lets go of Lily, keeping her balanced on his lap. 

Beth watches the scene before her, tears streaming down her cheeks at her daughter and the man she was going to spend forever with, meet. It was all she wanted for the past three years, Daryl being present in their daughter's life. But now that it was a reality, it scared her how in an instant, she and her child could lose him again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember to give kudos and reviews, I appreciate them all
> 
> Xoxo, 
> 
> N
> 
> P.S I totally had a gossip girl moment, I'm sorry


	6. She Is Messy, But She's Kind

Merle knew his baby brother had it bad for the white haired veterinarian's youngest daughter the moment he met her. 

She had come into the auto shop were Daryl worked, and Merle happened to be there visiting his dear ol' brother when little Beth Greene sashayed in. 

Of course she was far from the usual type of broad Merle would try and throw Daryl's way, but that was probably what the attraction was. Beth was beautiful, there was no denying it; big blue eyes, long blonde hair and legs that were far too long for a girl that tiny.

"Excuse me, I don't mean to bother y'all, but I seem to be havin' a bit of trouble with my truck," she said softly, voice all sunshine and sugary sweetness. 

Daryl was in the middle of rebuilding an engine when he turned around to glare at whoever dared to interrupt him. He never did like staying late at work.

The look on his face when he first laid eyes on the girl was downright comical. If he were a cartoon dog his tongue would have rolled out of his mouth and onto the floor. 

"W-what's the matter with it?" Daryl managed to stammer out, sounding every bit the fool Merle thought he was. 

Beth's cheeks turned a deep shade of pink. "Well I'm not entirely sure to be honest. It keeps makin a ticking noise." 

"Maybe someone put a bomb in there," Merle remarked, "Ya got any enemies? Forget to return a library book?" 

Daryl turned his head and shot him a death glare. 

"What, it's a legit question?" Merle said, hands up in defense. 

Beth smirked in amusement. "Not that I know of, no.

"Ya probably just need an oil change is all," Daryl told the girl, not quite looking into her eyes.

"I hope so. I love my truck, it was my brother Shawn's," she says quietly, hand absentmindedly going to her left wrist that was covered in bracelets. 

Everyone in town knew about the car accident that took Herschel Greene's son and wife eight months earlier. Beth apparently had been in the car with them and was the only one to live. Merle couldn't imagine what he would have done if it were Daryl. He'd probably jump off the nearest bridge.

"I can't look at it tonight, if ya leave it here I can check it out first thang tomorrow." 

He's talking more to the ground than he is the cute girl in front of him. The Dixon charm must have skipped him. 

Her pretty pink lips turn down into a frown. "How would I get home?" She ponders innocently enough. 

Merle goes to raise his arm to volunteer to take the little blonde on a ride when his baby brother grows a pair. 

"I'll take ya," Daryl grunts out, chewing on his lower lip anxiously. 

Beth's whole face lights up like he just told her he bought her a pony. 

"Really? I don't wanna impose.." Ever the polite young southern belle. 

Daryl shrug. "Ain't a big deal, just bout finished here anyway." 

"Thank you, Mr.?" she trails, waiting for him to give her a name. 

He says it quickly like he's ripping off a bandaid. "Daryl. Daryl Dixon." 

"Well," she's grinning again. "Nice to meet you Mr. Dixon. I'm Beth Greene." 

 

After that Daryl and Beth were pretty much attached at the hip. At first Daryl insisted they were just friends. She was too young, too good for a guy like him. His baby brother was ever the fucking martyr, it got on his nerves. Apparently it did Beth's too. 

He came to bother Daryl at work late one night to see Beth, face flushed and wet with tears and Daryl looking like a kicked puppy. Merle stops to listen at the door, cracked open just enough to see them without their knowledge.

"Is it cause of my age?" She asks, sounding heartbroken. 

"No." Once again, Daryl's not looking at her.

She pauses, as if it hurts her to say what she's trying to get out. "I-is it me?" Her voice is shaky with tears. 

"I know I'm nothing like the other women you've been with," Beth motions to her body. 

Merle holds in a laugh. Other girls? The last time that boy saw a pussy was when he sprung from one. Sure he'd throw a piece of tail Daryl's way every now and again, but for all he knew he paid the girls to say they fucked. His baby brother was the sweet one. If anyone was the ladies man of the pair, it was ol' Merle. 

His brother came to life in that moment. 

Daryl took Beth's face in his hands. "Don't you get it, you're fuckin' perfect." 

Then in a move Merle could only guess Daryl had seen in some shitty movie, he kissed her in such a way that left Merle fucking impressed.

 

Daryl never quite understood why the blonde loved him, but he accepted it. He would play the good boyfriend and go meet her family and surprisingly, Herschel didn't stand at the porch with a shot gun waiting. He welcomed Daryl and himself to Sunday dinners with the Greene's. Merle never showed of course, but Beth always sent Daryl home with leftovers for him. 

 

It was a year into Daryl and Beth's relationship when Merle managed to fuck it all up. Daryl had saved enough money to buy Beth a ring, and once she finished school they were going to get married. 

Merle for some reason or another started using pretty heavily again and got in deep with the Governor's crew. They were the local gang that dealt him drugs. He owed them about twenty grand in damages and had spent all his time extensions to get it. 

He ran into his and Daryl's trailer one night, surprisingly sober. He had overheard some of the said gang talking about taking a stroll down to the community college Beth went to to try and scare the brothers. 

Merle should have left on his own. But he knew they'd come for his baby brother and use him and that sweet girl to get to him. Merle was a selfish piece of shit, but he couldn't live with himself if either of them wound up dead cause of his actions. He had to take his brother and leave. 

When Merle told Daryl, at first he was angry. He'd never seen his brother so mad. Even let him clock him one in the nose. 

Then after minutes of silence with a defeated sigh and tears in his eyes, Daryl said, "When do we leave?"


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The last chapter was a flashback, I was just too lazy to italicize it all lol. Now we are returning to present day but still in Merle's POV. Thanks for reading!

Merle saw Maggie holding a little girl in her arms as she walked in the house. He assumed it was hers until he came face to face with the kid. 

The older Greene girl must have put her down for not more than a minute before she came tottling into the living room, stopping in front of him. 

She was all blonde hair and sweetness, little thing had to be Beth's. Merle felt a surge of anger and betrayal on behalf of his brother until he looked into the toddlers wide eyes. He knew those eyes, they were the same color as his and Daryl's, but bigger. Kid also had his baby brother's birthmark on the corner of her mouth. Realization hit Merle harder than any thug ever could. 

This girl was his niece. Daryl had a daughter. Which meant Beth was pregnant when he made his brother get the fuck out of dodge a few years back. Shit, ol' Merle was in deep. 

"Hi," the little one chirped out, staring at him with curiosity. 

Just as he was about to smart off and tell her not to talk to strangers, Merle sucked in a deep breath and reminded himself she was a toddler...and kin. 

"Hey there sunshine," he replied in his friendliest tone. 

"Wanna cookie?" She offers, taking a smushed what looked like it used to be an oatmeal cookie out of her pocket. 

The girl raises it up to his face beaming at him, showing off her baby teeth; she reminded him of Daryl when he was that age, before their ol' man got to him. All innocence and wonder.

"Nah kid, ya keep it," Merle tells her, and she stuffs it back into her jumper.

"My name's Lily," she says matter of fact and sticks out her tiny, now cookie less, hand.

Lily? Leave it to Beth to name her kid after a fuckin flower. 

He takes two of his much bigger and rougher fingers, and shakes his niece's hand. "Pleasure to meet ya, Miss Lily," he drawls and does a small curtsy with his free hand.

Lily lets out a soft giggle that sounds exactly like her mother's. "What's yer name?" 

Just as he's about to answer, Maggie comes barreling in. Her eyes practically bugging out of her head at the sight of him and the girl talking.

Merle smirks. "Why look who's come to join our party?!" He exclaims, feigning excitement. 

His gaze is on Lily, but he can feel Maggie burning a hole through him with her glare. 

Maggie sits down on the rocking chair besides the sofa Merle is occupying. She opens her mouth, but pauses, choosing her wording. 

"Ya remember how yer mama told ya about yer daddy?" Maggie asks the child, taking in the fact that Merle was still grasping on to the little ones hand. 

"Yep!" her face lights up. 

"This is yer daddy's brother, your Uncle Merle," Maggie explains, saying the last part with a hint of distain. 

Lily turns back to look at Merle, searching his face. "Ya know my daddy?!" She asks with glee, and Merle feels like someone punched him in the gut. 

Poor thing never even met Daryl, but by the way her face lit up, he bets Beth told her all about him. She doesn't know that he's upstairs with her mother. 

If she doesn't know, that also meant Daryl didn't know. Fuck his life. 

Merle forces a tight smile. "Sure do girl, he's my little brother." 

"Oh," she says and her cute little face falls. "Where's he?" 

Merle averts his gaze to Maggie whose look in her eyes begged him not to say anything. 

He already fucked things up enough for this family, he wouldn't do the same to the tot before him. 

So he does what he used to do to his baby brother, distracts him. "How bout that cookie?" and grimaces as he thinks about eating it. 

\-----------------------------------------------

After promises of tea party's and one day a pet pony, Maggie successfully gets the girl to agree to get ready for bed. When the little girl runs back to his legs and hugs him, giving him a kiss on the nose, Merle knows he's fucked. 

"Nigh' nigh' Uncle Merle," she waves and jumps into her aunts awaiting arms. 

"Night kid," he replies, accepting that that little girl now has him wrapped around her tiny finger.

Maggie wasn't gone more than a half hour, so when she came back down stairs kidless, Merle thought she drugged her for sure. 

"She always that quick of a sleeper? It used to take me hours to get Daryl down," Merle shared, thinking back to when Daryl was young and wouldn't stay in his own bed.

He'd be passed out from partying and sort of remember stumbling to bed, only to wake up to small feet padding across his bedroom floor and a scrawny body crawling up the empty side of his mattress and snuggling next to him.

Maggie's voice brought Merle out of his thoughts. 

"She's with Beth and Daryl. I guess Beth figured it was time to meet her dad," she rolls her eyes.

"The fuck is that supposed to mean?" He growled at her. 

"He left her, his _teenage_ girlfriend, pregnant and alone!" Maggie shouted, eyes burning with anger. 

Only Merle knew her rage should have been directed at him. After all, he was the one that dragged his brother into his bullshit, causing him to miss out on his only kid's birth. 

"It was me. He never would have left blondie if I didn't guilt him into it. He loved that girl, still does," Merle looked up to stare straight into the younger woman's eyes. 

"He's not like me or the ol' man, Daryl will take care of his own." 

Maggie bit her lip. "I know."

She sits down next to him on the couch and sighs. "When Beth was pregnant, it was real hard on her. She would wake up every day hoping in that way only she could, that he'd come back. Beth never gave up on him, up until the day she went into labor. I think that's when she realized Daryl wasn't comin' back." Maggie gave him a sad smile. 

"She can't go through that again Merle, it nearly destroyed her, if he-" 

"That lil girl needs her daddy, I ain't gon fuck it up again," he vows, and for the first time in his life, Merle actually means it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love writing Merle, he has that special something that borders on offensive and endearing.


	8. Chapter 8

Watching Daryl and Lily interact and get to know each other was truly a beautiful thing. The two of them had made something of a game out of it; Daryl would ask her simple questions, like her favorite color and the little girl would answer excitedly, eyes bright like Christmas morning. 

Slowly, the toddler beginning to tire, leaned against her daddy's chest and started to nod off, thumb back into her mouth. 

Daryl placed his hand on her back, feeling the even rise and fall of her small body.

"Ya wore the poor thang out," Beth smirked, glancing from Lily's sleeping form to Daryl's face. He looked down at his child with such love and adoration. 

Daryl's lips curled up into a half grin. "She sure is a heavy sleeper, like someone else I know." His voice is teasing, but it irritated her for some reason.

"Ya don't get much sleep being a single parent," Beth snapped suddenly, she wasn't looking for a fight, but still felt such hurt and betrayal for the man in front of her. 

The blissful expression is wiped off his face as his head shoots up to look at Beth. 

The eye that wasn't bruised shut, studies her, carefully choosing his words. "Beth, I know-"

"Ya don't know anything, Daryl! Ya can't just come back after all this time and expect thangs to go back to how they were!" She was whispering, but her tone was harsh. 

Now was as good a time as any to get all these things off her chest.

"I can go on if ya leave, I did before," her eyes drift down to the child in Daryl's lap. "But she couldn't." 

Daryl narrows his eyes at her, "What are ya tryin to say, girl?" His voice is low and rough, trying not to disturb the sleeping tot on his chest.

If she were to suggest he not be a part of their child's life, he didn't know what he'd do. 

He knows he fucked up bad the way he left her. Daryl had unknowingly missed out on the birth of his child, but he would try like hell to make it right. If she let him.

Beth raises her head up to meet his eyes and takes a shaky breath. "I'm sayin, I don't want ya to break her heart the way ya did mine. I don't want her to love ya, only for ya to leave when Merle deems it time," 

Daryl could see the moisture pooling in her eyes, and felt like someone punched him in the stomach. 

"I don't give a shit bout what Merle says. I'm not leavin y'all," he growled out, the pain in his voice evident. 

"Ya can't guarantee that Daryl. Ya didn't plan on leavin with him before," she says sadly, wiping away the stray tear that escaped down her left cheek. 

"God damn it, Elizabeth! I swear to ya, I ain't goin' nowhere!" His voice breaks at the use of her full name, straining to get his message through to the young woman across from him.

Beth's eyes well with tears again as she speaks.

"I spent all of my pregnancy hopin and wishin that you'd come back to me. But the night I gave birth, ya weren't there. Ya never thought about comin back until Merle suggested it three years later. Why is now any different, cause ya feel ya owe us? Lily and I are not some obligation, ya don't have to save us, Daryl." 

Daryl begins to tremble with anxiety and anger. "That's bullshit! I thought about ya every fuckin day..Don't ask me to stay away, cause ya might as well kill me. I love y'all, and I can't be without either of ya."

Daryl takes his bottom lip between his teeth nervously, debating whether or not to ask this question. "Ya still love me?"

Staring into his darker orbs, she answers honestly, "I never stopped," Beth shakes her head and let's out a watery laugh that sounds more like a sob. "What a fool I am."

Daryl sinks his teeth deeper into his lower lip, the familiar copper taste of blood on his tongue. "Nah, I'm the fool. I shoulda never left y'all. I just couldn't see ya get hurt cause o' me," he squeezes her hand harder to emphasize his point.

He rubs the top of her knuckles with the pad of his thumb.

"We went to Savannah. Far enough away from Senoia to where they wouldn't find Merle. I called ya once, from some shitty pay phone. Ya picked up and I didn't have the balls to answer ya. Just listened to ya voice until ya hung up on me." He chuckled at the memory of her aggravated tone at who she thought was a prank caller.

"I'd give anything to take it back and be there for y'all, I would. But I can't. I want to be in our daughter's life, I want to be in yours. Just, just have a little faith in me, girl," He stares at her with an immense amount of love and hope in his dark blue eyes, Beth can't bare to refuse him. 

Beth sighs, knowing her agreeing to let him back into her life was inevitable.

"We can try Daryl. It won't be like it was before, it can't. Please don't make me regret this." 

He hesitates for a moment before closing the gap between them and pressing his lips to hers.

Daryl feels her kiss him back for a second before she pulls away, their foreheads touching although body's mindful of the child between them. 

"Nah it won't be like before, it'll be better," he promises, grinning like the Cheshire Cat.


End file.
